Miracle of Roses

Miracle of Roses by Miguel Matos is inspired by St. Elisabeth Queen of Portugal and the legend connected to her kindness. "Elizabeth was born in Zaragoza, Spain in 1271, she was the daughter of Peter III of Aragon and was married off to King Denis of Portugal in 1282. Throughout her life, Elizabeth demonstrated a great compassion to the poor and legend says she would leave the palace in disguise, in order to take food for the less fortunate.

The Miracle of Roses happens one day when the king discovered that Elizabeth was leaving the palace to take food to the poor. This is something that the queen had been forbidden to do. The king had threatened to lock her up and she was to never leave the palace again if the disobeyed. Despite this, the Queen never stopped feeding the poor and every day she would leave the palace and help her people.

One winter day, Elizabeth left the palace carrying pieces of bread hidden in her dress. As the King saw her going out, he asked, “What you are carrying?” She answered, “Roses, my lord.” As it was winter and roses were nowhere to be found at the time and in that cold weather, he demanded her to show him what she was carrying. When the queen unfolded her dress, roes fell on the floor.

The transformation of bread into roses is a miracle attributed to St Elizabeth of Portugal, a woman that set an example for devotion to God and kindness to her people. After the death of her husband in 1325, she entered the Santa Clara a Velha Monastery in Coimbra where she lived until 1336, when she passed. Pope Urban VIII canonized her in 1625." From the official website.

Miracle of Roses is not one of the rose fragrances we are used to. It's unique in its own kind and somehow strange. A gourmand that doesn't overpass the bounds of the nowadays` trend of sickly sugar-coated fragrances. It almost feels like roses and cinnamon were infused into the cozy fluffiness of another weird, yet true to the niche concept, fragrance - Jeux de Peau by Serge Lutens. It creates the realistic image of having breakfast in a kitchen where the smell of rising dough still floats in the air staining the red roses on the counter with its fermented aroma. Fresh baked bread spread over with creamy butter, cinnamon and a touch of smoky, slightly woody, honey soaked in warm milk. The roses will soon lose their greenness into a powdery and dry woody aroma with a touch of darkness rising like a cloud. Miracle of Roses oscillate from wet to dry and it's changing its direction to a completely different path of each stage. The final  stage is dominated by an avant-garde honey note with woody tonalities and animalic mumbling specks reminiscent of the last phase of How You Love by Jazmin Saraï and the highly regarded by the animalic devotees, Absolue Pour le Soir.